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Tuesday, February 11, 2003

Anti-Semites against the war.

Rabbi Michael Lerner has been banned from speaking at the antiwar rally in San Francisco this Sunday, February 16. One of the rally organizers, Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER), has stated that it will not allow a "pro-Israel" speaker to take the stage — despite the fact that Rabbi Lerner has been an outspoken critic of Israeli policy in the occupied territories, has endorsed ANSWER's antiwar rallies in the past, has signed the Not in Our Name petition against the war, and is widely known to be among the most progressive of American rabbis.

Lerner is the editor of Tikkun magazine, a leading left-liberal Jewish voice. The disturbing part of this story is that the other antiwar organizations in San Francisco didn't complain more about ANSWER's "anti-Zionist" ban. The Nation's David Cone has the full story. (He took aim at ANSWER back in November, too.) Remember, folks: the enemy of your enemy is not necessarily your friend. Liberals — especially religious liberals — have no friends at ANSWER, no matter how much you hate war. If going to protests is your thing, great — but anti-Semitism is an ugly thing, whether it pops up on the left or the right.